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Similar breed

We take a look at how close the Musto Skiff and RS700 are

Two very similar high performance singlehanded boats have emerged and been thriving on the UK scene in recent years. It is hard to see any difference between the Musto Skiff and the RS700 at first, but they are there to be seen.
In terms of their dimensions, the two boats are very similar to one another - something which has caused a great deal of rivalry between the two classes: On the most basic level both are single handed high performance trapeze boats with a spinnaker. Both boats are around 5.5m long, with the Musto coming in at 4.55m and the 700 13cm longer at 4.68m. Both are extremely similar in weight – the Musto weighs 80kg and the 700 79kg.
While very similar in a number of ways, the two boats do have their differences. Most noticeable when side by side is the variation in style of cockpit layout. The Musto is more similar to a 49er with a very clean flat deck and very minimal actual cockpit. The 700 on the other hand has a much more traditional design and seems to be a boat you are able to sit in as opposed to on.
A man most familiar with the difference between the two boats is RS700 UK National Champion, Paul Bayliss, who we caught up with at the recent Endeavour Trophy. “I sailed the Musto once in the early days and it seemed to me that fundamentally the boats are very similar,” he says “They are both a similar length, a similar width the rig sizes are about the same. In very course terms there is not much between them. The subtleties and differences lie in the way the boats are laid out and the cockpit ergonomics.”
One of Bayliss’s Musto Skiff sailing nemisis, Ian Turnbull gives his

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